The 5 Toughest Moments In Dark Souls

April 1, 2016

Richie

Many games are notable for being difficult. Ninja Gaiden, Ghouls ‘n Ghosts, and a slew of others are adored by fans for their unforgiving design. In modern gaming, few titles are as notorious for their high level of difficulty as From Software’s Dark Souls. With the third game in the series set to drop on April 12, let’s take a look at the five toughest moments in Dark Souls.

1. Bed of Chaos

If there’s one thing every Dark Souls player hates to fight, it’s the Bed of Chaos. The goal’s simple: destroy two glowing orbs on either side of the boss, then take the path that opens up underneath it to reach its core—and kill it. Easy, right? Well, there’s a problem. This boss has huge AOE attacks that come out quick, including large sweeping roots that cover a lot of ground, and blazing fire that engulfs a huge segment of the arena. Because of its size, and its seemingly random timings and choices of attacks, you’ll never see them coming. Oh, did I mention that most of the floor will crumble as you step on it? Prepare to die a lot.

2. Invasions

Invasions are the bane of anyone new of the series. As hard as this game is, it gets even more serious when other players decide to break into your game for the sole purpose of killing you. If you want to get rid of them, you’ll have to either challenge the boss of the area, or kill the invader before they kill you, all the while fighting off the regular dangers Lordran has to offer.

3. Killing Sif

OK, the battle with Sif is relatively easy. The difficulty comes from having to execute a majestic wolf who’s only trying to protect you from suffering the same fate as his companion, Artorias. If you’ve completed the game’s DLC before the battle, it gets even harder to do, as the cutscene entering the battle changes so that Sif recognizes you as a friend, and still has to fight you to the death. Piling on the guilt, when he’s brought close to death, he begins to limp and whimper as he struggles to swing his sword. Can you really bring yourself to finish him off?

4. Ornstein and Smough

Pikachu and Snorlax. S’mores. The Internet has a tonne of pet names for them, but this pair’s the biggest roadblock in the first game. Ornstein’s fast, hard to keep track of, and fires bolts of lightning at you from a distance. Smough’s huge, slow, but carries a hammer that can kill weaker players in one shot. Together, they’re a fierce duo who will kill you over and over again. To make matters worse, when you kill one, the other absorbs his power, giving him a full HP restoration and additional attacks. Your only chance is to pick your spots, keep moving, and use the pillars in the room for cover. There’s no shame in summoning help for this battle, because you’ll definitely need it.

5. Artorias

Artorias is a former knight of Gwyn who’s been corrupted by the darkness of the abyss. The focus of Dark Souls’ DLC, he’s no pushover. Despite being quite big, he’s deceptively fast and his movements are erratic and hard to predict. His attacks come out very quickly, and when they connect, they do massive damage. This is a true test of any Dark Souls player’s mettle, and a victory here is well-deserved.